It was an all-Canada affair as Western downed the University of Toronto, 4-2, in the Collegiate StarLeague (CSL) finals at the Major League Gaming (MLG) competition in Anaheim, Calif., last month. These CSL finals marked the second time two Canadian schools faced off for the North American StarCraft collegiate title.
Along the way to the title, Western defeated notable schools such as the University of Florida and University of Chicago.
Team members included Fraser Bain, Engineering; Christopher Ostojic, Ivey Business School; Christian Tam, Science; Rajiv Jain, Andy Liu, Joshua Martow and Colin Sue-Chue-Lam, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.
More than 100 North American colleges and universities participate in the CSL, an intercollegiate gaming league. Leagues are currently organized around the games StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm, League of Legends and Dota2. Western won playing StarCraft II, a military/science-fiction strategy video game.
eSports, organized video game competitions, have exploded in popularity around the world. Last month, Robert Morris University Illinois added ‘online sport’ to its athletic program. The school plans to recruit 27 players (a nine-person main starter team and two support teams). Eligible students can receive up to 50 per cent off tuition and boarding fees ($19,000 per year).